A tribute to Conner’s son Duncan, beloved pet of Emily and Susan

Duncan is shown above in the first three pictures and Emily is shown in the last picture as a little girl with her first collie.

Loving words from “Mom”:

He was a bit of a prankster. He loved hide and seek with his people and Violet (his sister). He loved beautiful young women, especially runners. Carpenters, painters, roofers, and stone masons were his man friends.

As Billy said, “he’s like a star defensive back, always blocking your forward motion.”

He loved Mason, managed Violet, and appreciated a good nap in front of the fire. He was Emily’s boy above all else.

When he was 8 months old, he escaped from Emily and me after a walk at Middlesex School. We split up and searched.

A large group of faculty and staff dressed in black was walking across the circle from the chapel to the Terry Room.

I came out from behind a building just as the last of them was passing thru the big double doors into the building.

There was a fluffy sable tail protruding from the center of the rear of the group. I donned my sunglasses, pulled up my hood and followed.

Through the glass wall I saw the people and a buffet.

It was a funeral reception for a retired faculty member, and there was Duncan, up on the mezzanine, seated in front of the Athletic Director, politely removing the roast beef from the plate on his lap.

Duncan, you fulfilled your commitment to this family, and I love you for it.

Here’s to the big roast beef buffet across the rainbow bridge.

A Parting Prayer

Dear Lord, please open your gates
and call St. Francis
to come escort this beloved companion
across the Rainbow Bridge.

Assign him to a place of honor,
for he has been a faithful servant
and has always done his best to please me.

Bless the hands that send him to you,
for they are doing so in love and compassion,
freeing him from pain and suffering.

Grant me the strength not to dwell on my loss.
Help me remember the details of his life
with the love he has shown me.
And grant me the courage to honor him
by sharing those memories with others.

Let him remember me as well
and let him know that I will always love him.
And when it’s my time to pass over into your paradise,
please allow him to accompany those
who will bring me home.

Thank you, Lord,
for the gift of his companionship
and for the time we’ve had together.

And thank you, Lord,
for granting me the strength
to give him to you now.

Amen.

I’ve known about this poem above and the one below for years and wanted to repost it here for everyone that might not have heard of it.

For this one posted below I want to give credit to the site I copied it from as an image. It is a lovely site that lets you pay tribute to beloved animals that have past on. And you can read other’s stories but beware there will be tears. Here is the direct link to their site: https://www.rainbowsbridge.com/poem.htm

This is at the top of that page: Create a Rainbow Residency for your beloved Fur Child